


How Far

by WrathoftheStag (Mwuahna)



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Friends to Lovers, Gen, Just Friendship, No Romance, air guitars!, bowling!, but they're just friends here, cheesy singing, jack and bitty being buds, jack and bitty's friendship, the entire haus hanging out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-16 22:41:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11262513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mwuahna/pseuds/WrathoftheStag
Summary: A restless night at the Haus leads to an impromptu visit to the local bowling alley.  A fic on Jack and Bitty's friendship. Takes place in year two.





	How Far

**Author's Note:**

  * For [the_one_that_fell](https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_one_that_fell/gifts).



“Just trust me on this one, Jack,” Bitty said out of the side of his mouth as he reached for a bowling ball.

Jack nodded, then turned toward Shitty.

“Yeah, sure. I’m in,” Jack said as he handed Shitty a twenty dollar bill. 

“Lord, that’s kind of steep for me right now,” Bitty said hemming and hawing. “Well, at least it’ll be fun.”

“I feel bad taking your money, Bitty,” Shitty said as he took two crumpled tens. “But not too bad!”

Bitty looked at the balls, and decided on a neon green 12 pound ball. 

“How hard can it be?” he asked Shitty as he lifted the ball and held it to his chest.

Jack smirked, and sat down as he entered everyone’s name into the automatic scorer. 

Lardo and Shitty had been restless at the Haus that evening, and their restlessness began to spread to the rest of the team. Even with midterms quickly approaching, no one else had any real inclination of actually doing work.

“It’s Friday night. We’re young and alive… let’s do something. _Anything_ for fuck’s sake,” Shitty moaned as he dramatically spread himself across the kitchen table and sighed. 

Lardo sat on the counter looking through her Instagram feed while Bitty frosted some cupcakes, and frowned upon seeing Shitty plastered on the table.

“Can you please get your stank ass head off my kitchen table? We eat there, you know.”

“Stank ass head. Good one, Bittle,” Jack snorted as he also sat at the table, doodling some hockey plays in the margin of his history book.

Lardo jumped off the counter and shoved her phone in front of Shitty’s face. 

“Look! An online coupon for free pizza with a paid game at Strikers. Get up, peeps. We’re going bowling.”

Shitty immediately sat up and threw his fist into the air.

“Yes! A little ten pin, m’lady and gents?”

“Bowling?” Bitty said with a slight moue.

Jack stood up and said, “I could bowl. You don’t bowl, Bittle?”

Bitty shrugged and put down the last cupcake. “Fine… let’s go bowling, I guess.”

“Thank god, I was just about to pass out of boredom,” Lardo said as she grabbed the Haus keys from the glass bowl on the kitchen counter.

“Let’s go, kiddles. And bring those cupcakes,” Shitty said as he followed Lardo outside.

And so, the Samwell gang found themselves at a spur-of-the-moment bowling night. Things became interesting when Ransom and Holster texted that they were on their way and wanted in on the betting action.

“Okay, so the teams are Ransom and Holster, Shitty and me, you and Jack. Everyone ponies up $20 and the winning team takes all – plus they don’t have to pay for their game,” Lardo said as she texted Ransom and Holster to hurry their asses up.

“Sounds good to me,” Jack said as he finished adding Holster’s name to the game.

Bitty scooted into the seat next to Jack as he leaned in and whispered, “So we’re going to kill them right, Bittle?”

Bitty raised his foot to finish tying his bowling shoelace.

“My mother is the captain of the Scarletts. My Moomaw was the captain before her.”

“Who are the Scarletts?”

“Her bowling league, Jack. Keep up! I’ve been bowling since I was four, and never used bumpers. We’ve got this, Jack. We’ve got this.”

Shitty approached with a pitcher of beer, a pitcher of Coke, and a stack of red Solo cups. 

“What are you two whispering about?”

“Just giving Bittle some pointers,” Jack said.

“Throw the ball and hit the pins, right?” Bitty said, eyes wide.

“That’s the idea, Bittle.”

Bitty nodded and stared at the lane, as Shitty laughed and said, “You’ll be okay, Bitty. I mean, we’re probably gonna fucking massacre you but you’ll be okay.”

Lardo fist bumped Shitty and said, “Harsh, man. Even if it’s true.”

“All right! We’re here! Let’s get this party started,” Ransom shouted as Holster quickly helped himself to a cup of beer.

“Hey, who entered the names?” Ransom asked as he pointed at the screen.

“Justin, Larissa, Adam, Jay-Zed, Crappy, and Eric. Dude,” Lardo said with laughter. “Why am I so offended you used my name?”

“Hard same,” Holster said with a frown, as Jack and Bitty began to laugh. 

“Uh, Jay-Zed was it? It’s your turn, “ Bitty said.

Jack knocked down eight pins on his first go.

“Not bad, Jacko,” Shitty called out, “But we’re still gonna win.”

When it was finally Bitty’s turn, he took the ball and fumbled it slightly. Jack sat back and watched, swallowing down his grin, rubbing his face to hide it.

“Here goes,” Bitty said as he walked down the lane, then expertly released the ball as it landed loud and straight. A perfect strike.

“How’s that?” Bitty asked as he walked back and high fived Jack’s hand, held high and waiting.

“You little fucker!” Shitty yelled with a smile as Ransom and Holster called out _Dude!_ in unison. Lardo and Jack laughed.

“What?” Bitty said innocently. “Beginner’s luck, right?”

“Great fucking strike, eh?” Jack said smugly.

 **+++**

“You two are obnoxious as hell. I hope you are aware, bro,” Ranson said bitterly as Jack and Bitty led in points, and Bitty finished scoring his latest strike.

“How’s that saying go, Bittle? Don’t hate the player?”

“Hate the game!” Bitty said as he danced and shimmied back toward his seat. Jack jumped up and unexpectedly joined him.

“Ugh, whatever, dudes,” Lardo groused as she grabbed a handful of popcorn from the red plastic basket, and flung it at them.

Jack and Bitty laughed and fist bumped each other.

Just then, _More than a Feeling_ by Boston began to play over the bowling alley’s speakers, and Jack perked up. He had a little beer in him and was feeling relaxed and a bit silly.

“Oh hell no, Jacko. It’s your jam, son,” Shitty called out.

“You and your dad rock,” Lardo said with a smile as Jack began to air guitar.

“Hey! I actually know this one,” Bitty said. “Coach has this CD!”

Jack closed his eyes and began to sing.

“Now you’ve done it, Strikers. You’ve got this Canadian beaut singing,” Shitty called out toward the speakers in the ceiling.

“I looked out this morning and the sun was gone…Turned on some music to start my day,” Jack sang.

Ransom and Holster joined in Jack’s imaginary band providing air drums and air guitar, while Shitty was a backup dancer. Lardo whooped as her boys carried on.

“I lost myself in a familiar song. I closed my eyes and I slipped awayyyy!”

Bitty jumped in with the chorus, “It’s more than a feeling. More than a feeling!”

“When I hear that old song they used to play!”

“And I begin dreaming. More than a feeling!”

“Till I see Marianne walk awayyyy!”

Bitty blushed as Jack pulled him in and ruffled his hair and called out, “Nice job, Bittle!

“All right now, you’re gonna mess up my ‘do!” Bitty said laughing and swatting at Jack.

Jack smiled and playfully punched Bitty in the arm as Bitty punched him back. Jack was so glad that they were all together, enjoying each other’s company and having fun.

 **+++**

“…Sixty, eighty, one hundred, one twenty. Quite frankly, I feel robbed,” Shitty said with a pout as he placed the money in Bitty’s hand.

“I never said I didn’t know how to play,” Bitty said.

“It’s true. He didn’t,” Jack said as he grinned and took a sip of beer.

“That’s right. Thanks for having my back, Jack.”

Bitty smiled and looked at Jack. If anyone had told him during his frog year that Mr. Eat More Protein would be joking and smiling and conspiring with him, he would have ordered them to go home because they were obviously drunk. And yet, there they were. 

Jack was now one of Bitty’s closest friends. Sure, he got on Jack’s nerves every now and then and boy, was it ever mutual on many occasions (It’s pronounced _pecan_ , Zimmermann!) but Bitty knew he could count on Jack. 

Jack Zimmermann was a friend, a good friend, and this made Bitty happier than he could have imagined. How far they’d come.

“All right, let’s go,” Ransom said. “I actually do have a paper I should be working on.”

“Me too,” Lardo added bitterly.

Everyone agreed and threw in unhappy mutterings and random complaints as they walked outside and into the cool evening air.

“Is there any pie at the Haus?” Holster asked.

“I can’t believe you’re even asking,” Shitty said.

“Hey, Bittle?”

“Yeah, Jack.”

“Real good game.”

“Thanks, Jack.”

“Oh, and Bittle?”

“Huh?”

“Don’t forget to give me my share of the money,” Jack said with a smirk.

How far they’d come indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> For [The_One_that_Fell](http://archiveofourown.org/users/the_one_that_fell) who wanted to read some Jack and Bitty friendship fics. :)
> 
> Boston's [More than a Feeling](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSR6ZzjDZ94) is totally my Dad Music jam, too.
> 
> All OMGCP characters belong to Ngozi.
> 
> Come and say hi to me on [Tumblr](http://wrathofthestag.tumblr.com/).


End file.
